How to choose your Accounting System
Getting the best Accounting System for your business is so important. The right Accounting system will make running your business simpler, your processes easier, can improve your cashflow and save you time and money.
So how do you know which system to go for? You need an expert – someone who can advise you – someone who is going to understand your business, so here are our tips on how to find a good system provider to advise, install and possibly manage your accounting system:
Get advice. We can’t emphasize this enough. There are lots of accounting systems out there, some are free, some aren’t, some are suitable for sole traders, some aren’t. Some do payroll, some don’t. Some link to your bank account, some don’t. You get the picture.
You could spend a lot of your value time researching all the options but quite honestly your time will be better spent elsewhere (like growing your business).
You need a system provider who already knows this stuff. Check their credentials, get testimonials, take references if you want to, but make sure that they know their stuff.
Find someone GREAT. And we do mean GREAT.
You want someone who has worked with Cloud Accounting systems across a multitude of different companies. You want a system provider who will be able to understand your business and quickly determine what you need and what will add the most value, saving you the most time and working within your budget. You need to find someone that you can build a relationship with, someone that you trust.
Sometimes smaller is better.
Without wishing to tarnish everyone with the same brush, larger companies tend to involve lots of people in system migration. The more people involved the more likely that mistakes will happen, and things won’t join up quite so well.
There’s also an increased risk that each person involved won’t understand your business as well as they should so you’re less likely to get a system that’s been properly tailored to you. If you get offered an off the shelf package, you’ll likely be paying for tools that you won’t need and missing out on the ones you do need.? Its just our view, but we prefer providers who can own your system from end to end and tailor it to your business.
Support Support, Support.
You are going to have questions. You are going to need advice. So make sure that whoever is implementing and/or running your system is going to provide you with both of these things as and when you need it. We’ve seen online chat support and we’ve seen email support, but we reckon that telephone and Skype support is the best. It’s real time and you get to clear one question in one call (rather than lots of emails or messages).
Training.
Is absolutely key. We have seen companies implement an Accounting system and then have only their finance teams use it – purely because proper training hasn’t taken place. We’ve even seen a whole system being put in place and then it just being used for payroll – what a waste!
You also want to get regular systems update training and refresher training. Some companies offer training once – yes, you heard that right, just once & then you’re on your own. We suggest having update training at least once a year to make sure you understand changes or updates to the system and to make sure you’re getting the most out of your system.
We are passionate about Cloud Accounting systems because we have seen these systems save companies (and people) so much time and money. They reduce the stress of running a business – no more waking up at 3am worrying about your cashflow or your tax bill because you are in control 24/7.
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How to choose your Accounting System
If you’d like some help, guidance or someone to talk to about Choosing Your Accounting System we can help – just get in touch for an informal chat and we will guide you in the right direction.
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